LAREDO, Texas — As the nation begins Holy Week, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Field Operations, Laredo Port of Entry will soon begin to process larger volumes of international travelers to the United States through the South Texas border. The increase in traffic is due to the upcoming Holy Week (Semana Santa), which is one of the busiest travel periods of the year.
“As we approach Holy Week, we traditionally see a significant increase in vehicular traffic at our ports of entry,” said Port Director Alberto Flores, Laredo Port of Entry. “To help facilitate the flow of traffic and decrease wait times, we strongly encourage travelers to utilize the CBP Home app to obtain tourist permits in advance, consult the border wait times before they travel and choose their border crossing port location accordingly.”
The Laredo Port of Entry will implement a variety of effective measures to foster a smooth, orderly traffic flow, including electronic tourist permits, and a satellite, off-site I-94 processing facility, located on the ground floor of the Outlet Shoppes at Laredo, across from Old Navy, next to the food court from April 6–19, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-7 p.m. on Sundays. CBP at Juarez- Lincoln Bridge will be opening additional lanes at the old CBP Import Lot (located below the bridge) on an as-needed basis to process given amounts of vehicular traffic.
U.S. citizens are reminded to bring a Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative-compliant document, such as a valid U.S. passport, Trusted Traveler Program card, Enhanced Driver’s License, or Enhanced Tribal Card, when reentering the United States and should be prepared to present a WHTI-compliant document if requested by a CBP Officer during a border inspection. Any noncitizen attempting to enter the United States through illegal means or without appropriate documentation may be subject to expulsion or removal.
CBP encourages all travelers to have their WHTI-compliant entry documents in hand as they approach primary inspection booths and to declare all agricultural items, liquor, and currency or monetary instruments more than $10,000.
To help reduce wait times and long lines, travelers can take advantage of the CBP Home™ mobile application. CBP Home is a mobile application that grants you access to a variety of services provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection such as border wait times and applying for a provisional I-94 entry permit.
Members of the traveling public can also monitor border wait times or obtain the BWT app on their smartphone via Apple App Store, Google Play so that they can observe the wait times and make an informed decision on which bridge to use. These wait times are updated on an hourly basis.
Also to avoid any potential delays or fines due to travelers bringing prohibited/restricted agricultural items, CBP encourages travelers to declare all agricultural items to a CBP officer upon arrival and before making their journey to consult the list of prohibited and restricted items within the Know Before You Go guide.
Follow the Director of CBP’s Laredo Field Office on X at @DFOLaredo on Instagram at @dfolaredo and also U.S. Customs and Border Protection at @CBPSouthTexas for breaking news, current events, human interest stories and photos.